


Let Battle Commence

by TeamGwenee



Series: Up North [1]
Category: A Song of Ice and Fire - George R. R. Martin, Game of Thrones (TV)
Genre: F/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-03-29
Updated: 2019-04-03
Packaged: 2019-12-26 08:18:20
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 4
Words: 4,064
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18279365
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/TeamGwenee/pseuds/TeamGwenee
Summary: When Sansa Stark runs into Daenerys Targaryen on a night out, their growing rivalry leads both girls into competing for the ultimate prize. But Jaime Lannister is playing another game altogether.





	1. Chapter 1

"Sansa!"

Sansa’s perfectly manicured hand hovered above the door knob. She grimaced at the sound of her mother’s cry carrying through the hallway. Twenty-two and still at her parent’s beck and call. She really needed to find her own place.

But for that to happen, she needed money. And to get money, she needed a job. Her parents weren’t short on cash, far from it. But with a family of eight and a crumbling mansion that was in constant need of repair, Sansa’s need for privacy was not enough to justify forking out for even a deposit for a flat. If she was going to live off her family’s cash, she could do it from the family home.

Sansa thought she had found the perfect job at Manderly Fashion House, only to lose it out to fucking Daenerys Targaryen.

“Sansa!”

Sansa forced her painted lips into a sticky smile and faced her mum.

“Yes Catelyn?” she asked, ignoring the amusement pulling at her mother’s lips.

“Are you planning to go out tonight?” Cat asked pointlessly, well aware that even Sansa didn’t put on a face full of makeup and her favourite cocktail dress just for an evening of Netflix and cauliflower pizza.

“Yes,” Sansa said curtly, dreading where this was leading.

“Well, be a dear and take Brienne with you,” Catelyn asked.

“What? Why?” Sansa asked in horror.

“You know I would feel better you not being out alone, and Brienne is still so new to the area. It would do her good to get out for one night.”

Brienne Tarth was her mother’s newest pet project. Her dad an old army colleague of Cat’s, Cat had practically insisted Brienne board for free at Winterfell when the young woman moved North. She had moved to Winter Town to work at the local horse stables, and since then nearly the entire Stark family had taken to her. For all that she seemed barely capable of looking anyone in the eye and stringing a sentence together, she found herself bonding with them all.

 She sparred with Robb and Jon, even went sailing with Theon. Gave Rickon and Bran endless piggy back rides around the grounds of Winterfell and as for Arya, well she was the big sister Arya had always dreamed of.

And Seven knew her mother never could resist a hard luck case. And there was no greater hard luck case than Brienne Tarth. As dumb, dull and homely as an ox.

And now her mother wanted her to tag along on the first night out Sansa had had in weeks. Chaining Brienne to Sansa like a great millstone around her neck.

 “Catelyn, normally I would love to spend the evening with Brienne,” Sansa said winningly, “But I’ve had such a hard week and I really just want a night on my own.”

“Well Brienne is hardly going to bother you too much; it will just get her out of the house and keep unwanted attention away from you.”

 _‘And wanted attention’,_ Sansa thought bitterly. She could picture her, sat there at a bar table with Brienne in her frumpy clothes and awful haircut. Scaring off some much-needed courters from Sansa and wasting the chance to soothe Sansa’s damaged ego. Scowling and glowering, utterly miserable.

Utterly miserable.

“But you know Brienne won’t enjoy a night out, she probably won’t even agree!” Sansa insisted half-heartedly, warming to the idea of her inviting Brienne as it dawned on Sansa how unlikely it was for Brienne to accept.

“If I can get Brienne to agree to go out with you, will you take her?”

Sansa smiled charmingly at her mother. “I would be delighted to.”

One hour, thirteen minutes and a furious rummage through Brienne’s meagre wardrobe later, Sansa stepped from the front door, cursing herself for having forgotten her mother’s unwavering ability to get her way.


	2. Chapter 2

Sansa barely held back a sigh as they slumped down in their booth. Brienne really did look tragic. Perhaps if she would just smile, and wear some shorts, and let Sansa put some makeup on her and take her to a salon to sort out that bird’s nest on her head and clear away the horse dirt from her nails, she need not be such a sight. But it was hard enough to talk her into the simple black jeans and silky blue shirt.

“Do you want a drink?” Sansa asked, just to have something to say and find an excuse to escape her sullen companion.

“Just an orange juice, thanks,” Brienne murmured.

Sansa fled, breathing in relief as she left Brienne’s eyeshot, only for said relief to plummet to the pit of her stomach at the sound of a familiar high-pitched giggle.

She turned around to see Daenerys ‘call me Dany’ Targaryen perched on a bar stool, flipping her naturally platinum hair and batting her naturally purple eyes. Ever since she blew into Winter Town like a hurricane, she had never been far from admirers. Admirers Sansa was not ashamed to say had once been hers, as the beautiful, elegant daughter of the wealthy Starks. All throughout her childhood and teenage years, Sansa had been flattered and fawned upon. Even in nursery the girls got into crying fits over who got to sit next to her in carpet time, and the boys challenged each other to thumb wars to carry her pink plastic lunchbox.

Then Daenerys Targaryen burst onto the scene and Sansa was left in the cold.  

Sansa could not help but loathe her. First, she started dating Jon, making him fall helplessly in love with her, only to dump him to focus on her career. For months after that the Starks had sent endless nights kept awake by the sound of My Chemical Romance blaring out of Jon’s bedroom as he wrote bad poetry and painted his nails black. Ned had to spend hours trying to talk him out of joining the Night’s Watch and renouncing women, and Catelyn had given up on scrubbing the cheap purple hair dye Jon had stained the main bathroom with.

If that wasn’t bad enough, the wretched bitch had swooped in and stolen the only job Sansa had ever wanted.

The North was hardly a hub of culture, and the only place a budding designer like Sansa could hope to find work was the notoriously competitive Manderly Fashion House. She had spent months preparing for her hard-won interview, putting together a portfolio and practising interview techniques with her mum at the kitchen table.

When she had been rejected at the very final stage of the interview process, Sansa had been heartbroken. She needed a night out to forget about it all, and when she thought it couldn’t get any worse than being stuck with Brienne all night, serendipity oh so kindly landed her in the same bar as her sworn enemy.

“Sansa!” Dany trilled in delight, trotting over to Sansa air kissing her cheeks, “I haven’t seen you in weeks babe! How are you?”

“Good,” Sansa gritted out. “How are you?”

“Oh, I’m fine. Exhausted, work has been running me ragged. But fine. I'm just out with some work colleagues.” Dany fluttered her fingers over at her posse, who sat waiting for her return. “We’re having a little ‘welcome to the office’ after work drinks. So sweet of them.”

Sansa bared her teeth into a smile, inwardly spitting poison. Those should be her work colleagues. This should be her after work drinks. That should be her free designer handbag hanging from her shoulder.

Dany wasn’t convinced. “Oh Sansa,” she sighed. “You’re not still upset over the job, are you? Don’t worry, something will come your way.”

“Oh, I know it will,” Sansa declared with a confidence she did not possess, “I’m just worried about Jon.”

Dany’s face fell in genuine dismay. “Is he still taking it hard.”

“He’s doing his best,” Sansa said, relishing the guilt in Dany’s eyes. “He is still struggling to put himself together.”

Actually, right now Jon was probably snogging his Wildling girlfriend and stinking his bedroom with the smell of cannabis, but Dany didn’t need to know that.

“I hate hurting him,” Dany confessed, “But I really needed to keep my mind on my career right now. You will understand one day.”

“I already do,” Sansa said bluntly.

“Really?” Dany asked delightedly, “have you found something then?”

“Have I found something?” Sansa scoffed, rolling her eyes. “Have _I_ found something?”

“Have you?”

“No,” Sansa admitted, quickly adding on at the sight of Dany’s faux sympathetic pout, “But I will soon.”

“And have you got any man lined up?” Dany prodded, no doubt thinking of the queue of men just waiting to fall at her feet.

“No,” Sansa said.

“Oh, are you hoping to meet someone tonight?” Dany asked, her purple eyes scanning the bar room to single someone out. “Let’s see...oh! He’s rather beautiful!”

It didn’t take Sansa long to find out who Dany was talking about. Sitting in the corner of the room was the world’s most divine man. Green eyes, golden hair, a jaw that could cut cheese. But as soon as Sansa’s heart started racing it turned cold. She knew his face. He was Jaime Lannister.

And a Stark could never date a Lannister.

“I don’t know...” Sansa said doubtfully.

“Yes,” Dany agreed gently, “He might be a bit much for you. Still, if you don’t want him-”

“Hang on there!” Sansa said swiftly. Wasn’t that just like Daenerys? The first sign of reluctance and she swooped in like a vulture. She wasn’t taking this one from Sansa. “I think I might just give it a go after all.”

But Dany only had eyes for the golden Lannister, ignoring both Sansa and her work friend calling her over. “You can try,” Daenerys said at last, her voice as soft as a snake. “You can try.”


	3. Chapter 3

 

Brienne sipped the orange juice (which she had to get for herself, thank you very much), chewing absentmindedly on her on bendy straw. Casting a dull eye at the bar, she wondered if they did any food. She would kill a mammoth for a bacon cheeseburger and some cheesy chips. Catelyn Stark’s tuts of disapproval echoed in her head at the mere thought. So many calories, so much grease and fat, and so worth it.

Mind made up, she gathered her jacket and moved to the bar in the search for a menu. Sansa had ditched her nearly an hour ago to flirt with some bloke, and it looked like it was going to be a long night. She would have headed home early, but she knew Cat wouldn’t be happy if she was back at Winterfell in nearly under an hour of being out of the house.

Catelyn Stark had been anxious for Brienne to ‘get out an broaden her horizons’. She felt she was spending too much time at work, and apart from the Stark family she saw no one but her colleagues.

One colleague in particular.

It had been a grim day for the North when all of a sudden, Jaime Lannister had cut ties with nearly all his family and came to Winter Town. And an even grimmer one when it transpired that he would be working at the same retired horse shelter as Brienne.

The man was aloof, arrogant, condescending and rude and dangerously close to becoming someone Brienne would consider a friend. They ate lunch together, had drinks after work together, and Jaime texted her constantly with his endless nonsense. 

One evening, Catelyn had come across Brienne red-faced and choking as she sat hunched over her phone. From the flush on Brienne's skin, and the covert way Brienne tried to hide her phone, mumbling it being a text from Jaime, the Stark mother had only reached one conclusion. And Brienne didn't particularly fancy providing the evidence to prove her wrong.

(The actual truth was that Jaime had photo-shopped a horse onto Brienne's head and recommended Brienne show it as a reference for her plastic surgeon.)

Brienne wondered if befriending men other than Jaime Lannister was what made Catelyn Stark so insistent on Brienne joining Sansa on her night out. To try and get her away from Jaime.

If this was true, it wasn’t working. For sat in a corner, with Daenerys Targaryen and Sansa draped over him, sat a quiet and rather uncomfortable Jaime Lannister. From across the bar room floor, wide green eyes met her own and mouthed a silent ‘help me’.

Soft hearted wench that he was, Brienne laid down the menu and came to his rescue.

 

#

Sansa caught on quick that Jaime Lannister did not care to be touched. When Dany gently placed her hand over his own, he had firmly removed it, and he practically flinched when Sansa ran her foot down his leg. The unexpected modesty won Sansa over. This was not a man to flirt wantonly. No matter what her parents said, Sansa was sure there was something deeper to the golden-haired Lannister.

She remembered the day she came to meet Brienne at the stables. Sansa cared little for horses as a rule, ever since one had abruptly stopped before her to relieve itself. But on coming across Jaime Lannister alone in a stall, gently murmuring to a particularly bony and ragged looking pony as he ran a body brush around in soothing circles, Sansa’s heart couldn’t help but flutter. He had been so focussed, so kind.

True, the man was older than Sansa. But they were both adults. And a part of Sansa welcomed the idea of an older man with looks and money. One who would take care of her and spoil her and whisk her away from Winter Town. If only she could get rid of Dany.

“So Dany,” Sansa said lightly, “Jon has a new girlfriend.”

“That’s great!” Dany beamed. “Good for him.”

Sansa studied Dany’s face for any sign of jealousy, but beneath the blonde’s pixie purple eyes was an inscrutable fortress that gave nothing away.

“Her name is Ygritte,” Sansa continued. “She is an environmental activist.”

“Well that’s marvellous!” Dany chirped. “It puts me in mind of my environmentally friendly line I pitched yesterday. It’s early days of course, but my boss seems enthusiastic.” She turned to Jaime with an angelic smile. “One hundred percent locally sourced, sustainable fabrics.”

“That’s very worthy of you,” Jaime said politely.

“And what about you Sansa?” Daenerys asked pointedly. “What have you been up to?”

Sansa shrugged awkwardly, unwilling to admit before Jaime Lannister that most of her days were spent wandering around the house and shopping. “I’ve got a couple of things lined up,” she said vaguely.

“And how is the rest of your family?” Dany pushed, her smile growing ever wider. “You are so lucky to be living with your family still, and to be in the same house as your mum and dad.”

“It’s convenient,” Sansa replied, an edge to her voice. “It means I can help my mum and dad and keep an eye on the others. You wouldn’t understand of course but being an elder-sister a lot is expected of you. You can’t go gallivanting off to the other end of the country when it suits you. You have to help with the kids.”

Helping with the kids of course meaning, sticking them in front of the TV and hiding out in her bedroom. But she was sounding surplus enough as it was. She couldn’t help but shoot a quick glance at Jaime, hoping he wasn’t thinking her a helpless, frivolous child. Judging her. mocking her.

It was worse than that, he looked bored.

Sansa cursed herself for having been so obviously catty. What must Jaime think of her now? She wanted him to respect her, to see her as mature and graceful and beautiful. Eloquent and intelligent. Right now, he probably thought she was just some stupid, self-obsessed rich girl mooching off her parents.

And Sansa was sick of being that girl.

It was with relief she saw Brienne stumbling their way. Competing with Dany was only going to make her look bad. But next to Brienne, any girl would be hard pressed to fail at coming out as golden in comparison.

Perhaps having Brienne with her was not going to be the drag Sansa thought it was after all.


	4. Chapter 4

His knight in shining armour. His saviour. His warrior maiden descending from the heavens to come to his aide. Seven bless her.

Jaime stood swiftly as Brienne approached, the perfect gentleman in every way. Gods it was a relief to have her there. If he had to put up with Sansa Stark’s and Daenerys Targaryen’s fawning and flirting for one second longer, he would implode.

Or explode, preferably. That way he could take his tormenters out with him.

Brienne folded herself awkwardly into the booth, her long legs stretched out on the end. Sansa bloody Stark stuck between them, and insurmountable barrier. He needed to find a way to make her move, just for a moment. His eyes lingered on his blackcurrant rum and flickered over to Sansa’s pristine white dress. His hands twitched; ever so slightly, but no, he couldn’t. He looked at Sansa’s face momentarily, watching for a sign of irritation at the arrival of a fourth wheel. Instead she welcomed Brienne, her pink sticky lips curling into a smile as she tilted her head back, allowing Jaime the perfect view of both Brienne’s and her own face side by side.

Jaime frowned and buried his fist in his lap, his blackcurrant rum singing to him.

“Hi Jaime.” Brienne nodded at him and Daenerys in turn.”

“Hi,” Daenerys said warmly. “You work at the stables with Jaime, Brienne right?”

“That’s right.” Brienne’s gaze shifted over to Jaime. “Do you two know each other?”

“No,” Daenerys admitted, “But I know of the stables. I love horses. I have an ex-boyfriend who owns a show jumping stables and he taught me how to ride.”

“You will have to come over and help exercise the horses at one point,” Brienne offered.

“That sounds wonderful,” Daenerys agreed.

“I thought that you would struggle to find the time,” Sansa said quickly. “With work keeping you so busy?”

“I can always squeeze time in for a nice, hard ride,” Daenerys said innocently.

Jaime broke out into a coughing fit that he quickly smothered with a polite “Great, we can always use more volunteers.”

The devil taking a hold of him, he turned to Sansa with a winning smile. “And what about you Sansa, would you fancy coming along for a ride?”

From the corner of his eye, Jaime could see Brienne glaring suspiciously. She had told him of Sansa’s dislike of horses in passing more than once, and clearly didn’t approve Jaime’s attempts to bait the Stark girl. He had the pleasure of watching her squirm, before Brienne; too kind for her own good, swooped in.

“I was thinking about getting a bite to eat. Anyone else fancy something?”

“No thanks,” Dany said sweetly. “I really shouldn’t.”

“Me neither,” Sansa agreed, stretching in her seat to show off her flat stomach. “But you go ahead Brienne, you lucky thing.”

“Lucky?” Brienne asked, innocent of the comparison Sansa was drawing.

Sansa rested a slender arm upon the table, slim and elegant next to Brienne’s thick, muscular arm.

“It’s the way you are built,” Sansa explained. “You can eat and eat and you wouldn’t be able to see any difference. Me on the other hand,” Sansa leaned forward, squaring her shoulders and displaying her tiny waist, “Must be so careful as to what I do to my figure.”

“That’s very sad for you,” Brienne said bluntly, having at last caught on.

Sansa dipped her head graciously, smoothing down her white dress with enough force that she pulled the fabric taut against her womanly figure.

“It can be a chore,” Sansa agreed. “Always watching what I eat, and always spending hours on hair and makeup and being unable to rough house like you do and my siblings do. But then I suppose that is just my burden to bear. I care too much about what I look like. I wish I could be more like you Brienne and not care what anyone thinks of me. I really do.”

The blackcurrant rum went flying, painting Sansa’s white dress a delightful purplish pink.

“Whoops,” Jaime said dryly.

Sansa stared down in horror at her dress, before looking up her companions. Through watering eyes, she could see the laughter pulling at Dany’s lips and the mirth in her eyes. But worse than that was the smirk on Jaime Lannister’s face as he watched her desperately dab at the dress with flimsy paper napkins. Only Brienne looked concerned for her.

What had Sansa’s life come to? For Brienne Tarth to feel sorry for her.

Ignoring Brienne’s offers of help and Jaime’s empty apologises, she stood abruptly and clambered her way out of the booth, running to the ladies’ room.

From the booth, a triumphant Jaime scooted along and took his seat beside Brienne.

#

Without Sansa to compete with, and Jaime Lannister so obviously a lost cause, Daenerys made her excuses and made to re-join her colleagues. But as she passed the ladies’ room, she hesitated before going in. There she saw Sansa futilely trying to dry off her dress under the hand dryers, choking down sobs as makeup ran down her face.

“If it helps,” Dany began kindly, “I don’t think either of us were getting in there.”

“What do you mean?” Sansa sniffed, teetering in her heels.

“Didn’t you see the way he looked at your friend? We were both fighting a losing battle.”

Sansa didn’t know if it made her feel any better. On the one hand, she didn’t lose out to Daenerys, and one more loss at Dany’s hands would have broken her. But to lose to Brienne Tarth of all people? It could very well prove the final blow to an already battered and bruised ego.

At least from the look on Daenerys’s usually composed face, she wasn’t the only one feeling somewhat insulted.

#

 Brienne turned to Jaime and stuck him with a glare.

“That was cruel,” she scolded him.

Jaime shrugged. “It’s not like the Starks can’t afford to get her a new dress,” he said defensively.

“It’s not just that,” Brienne chided him. “Asking her about the horses when you knew she was trying to impress you, you were mocking her.”

“And she wasn’t mocking you? Trying to make you look bad just to show off how pretty she is?” Jaime demanded.

“She doesn’t have to _try_ to achieve that,” Brienne said dully.

“Doesn’t she?” Jaime raised an eyebrow. “Well I can’t agree. It would be a quite a feat for someone to make you appear anything less than wonderful.”

Splotches of crimson stained Brienne’s pale cheeks like the blackcurrant rum over Sansa’s dress. “And now _you_ are mocking me,” she said accusingly.

“Usually, I am mocking you,” Jaime conceded. “I am a Lannister, it’s what we do. But in this instance,” he said as he clasped his hand over Brienne’s, “I am deadly serious.”

Brienne looked into Jaime’s sincere green eyes, her blush only burning brighter and harder.

“Jaime,” she began to say, her voice wavering.

“You said you were hungry,” Jaime said, rising to his feet. “What do you say we get a bite to eat?”

Brienne nodded numbly, standing up like an awkward foal. “Alright.” She nodded.

Beaming, Jaime took Brienne’s hand into his own. “Excellent,” he said, wrapping an arm around her shoulder, leaning over to whisper into her ear. “It’s a date. But best keep it a secret from Miss Stark, lest she take it into her head to stalk us behind menus and wait for a moment to pounce.”

"You're too cruel to her Jaime."

"You may think that, but I have to be cautious," Jaime insisted. "I bet you anything, the moment your back is turned she will have her claws in me and will be dragging me away to her lair." He shuddered and grasped Brienne's shoulders, ducking behind her. "There she is now! Quick, to the exit!"

Brienne rolled her eyes, but obligingly made her escape, back to the wall. "Don't worry Jaime, I'll protect you."

"On that," Jaime purred, "I have no doubt."


End file.
